How to capitalize the first character of each word in a string

java string uppercase lowercase capitalization
WillfulWizard picture WillfulWizard · Dec 12, 2009 · Viewed 432.5k times · Source

Is there a function built into Java that capitalizes the first character of each word in a String, and does not affect the others?

Examples:

  • jon skeet -> Jon Skeet
  • miles o'Brien -> Miles O'Brien (B remains capital, this rules out Title Case)
  • old mcdonald -> Old Mcdonald*

*(Old McDonald would be find too, but I don't expect it to be THAT smart.)

A quick look at the Java String Documentation reveals only toUpperCase() and toLowerCase(), which of course do not provide the desired behavior. Naturally, Google results are dominated by those two functions. It seems like a wheel that must have been invented already, so it couldn't hurt to ask so I can use it in the future.

Answer

Bozho picture Bozho · Dec 12, 2009

WordUtils.capitalize(str) (from apache commons-text)

(Note: if you need "fOO BAr" to become "Foo Bar", then use capitalizeFully(..) instead)

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